The loading of tape cassettes, such as audio and/or video cassettes, is typically carried out by automatic machines in which individual cassettes are automatically fed from a supply magazine to a loading station. In the loading station, the cassettes are filled with a predetermined amount of use tape from a reel of magnetic tape ("pancake") which is detachably mounted on a support hub. (See e.g. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,997,123, and 4,836,464). The loaded cassettes are then discharged from the loading station to a collection point.
In virtually every case, loading machines are provided with a single loading station which is interlocked or cooperates with a magazine or other mechanism for supplying the cassettes to be loaded. Therefore, if a level of productivity requiring four loading stations is desired, it is necessary to set up four discrete loading machines. This involves not only a relatively high purchase cost but also requires considerable space in a loading factory.
Notwithstanding the relatively high degree of automation achieved by previously known loading machines (See e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 5,118,045), manual intervention by an operator is still required to replace depleted pancakes on the support hub. This need for manual intervention in carrying out the above operation limits the number of machines which can be entrusted to a single operator.